You know those terrible American Apparel billboards? Or those totally skeezy, greasy Calvin Klein ones? Or any of the ones that basically make women out to be sex toys? Do you hate those? Take action! SPARK Summit, in conjunction with Women’s Therapy Center Institute and Endangered Bodies, are sponsoring a billboard design contest seeking positive,… Continue Reading →
On banning ads, photo-retouching, and (shock!) personal responsibility
In the wake of the big news that the MP Jo Swinson and the British Advertising Standards Agency has fabulously banned two ads by L’Oreal (owner of Maybelline and Lancome) showing Julia Roberts and Christy Turlington, I’m starting to think about how we — everyday women and girls — can help ourselves out of this… Continue Reading →
Annoyed with sexism? Milk says it’s just your PMS!
Jokes about PMS are so old and not funny that I almost didn’t even want to bother addressing The California Milk Processing Board’s latest campaign, a multi-media venture that features clueless men offering up half-hearted fauxpologies and gallons of milk to their apparently rage-absorbed, PMSing girlfriends and wives. The premise of the campaign is that… Continue Reading →
One hundred days without a mirror
This Monday celebrated our nation’s independence, and also marked the 101st day of my decision to go a year without mirrors. It seemed like an auspicious time to give About-Face a progress report! 1) FEASIBILITY: YES, I have been able to almost completely remove mirrors from my life, and I no longer feel dependent on… Continue Reading →
Teen girls in the Bay Area! Take Action with About-Face this summer and have fun!
NOTE: This program happened in July-August 2011. If you are interested in participating in future Take Action programs, please get in touch at takeaction@37.60.248.233/~aboutf72 or (415) 839-6779. We’re about to have some fun and make some meaningful change together! It’s time for About-Face to begin our Take Action program, where we bring 7-10 teenage… Continue Reading →
Hardy Girls Healthy Women joins in on About-Face activism
“It’s a covert operation! Shhh! Don’t tell anyone!” We absolutely heart this video of the Hardy Girls Healthy Women advisory board taking some covert dressing room action. In preparation for the upcoming SPARK Summit, Maya Brown, Mackenzie Riley, and Ali Jean Reynolds paid a trip to their local JC Penney and put our dressing room… Continue Reading →
About-Facers take action!
There’s nothing we like to see more than About-Face supporters take action! Check out 16-year-old cousins Danika and Arika making good use of our Covert Dressing Room Action Kit at a mall near Denver, CO. The girls told us a bit about what motivated them to act, and we hope you find their words as… Continue Reading →
PinkStinks: A healthy revolution
Majora Carter. Janine Benyus. Maggie Aderin-Pocock. Ever heard of them? Probably not. But besides embodying change and breaking down gender barriers, these women all have one thing in common: they’ve been featured as role models by PinkStinks, a British organization that provides young girls with alternatives to media messages. By promoting real role models, Ema… Continue Reading →
An Afternoon with Dov Charney: recap and updates!
Hey, About-Facers! Remember that action we were planning against American Apparel’s sexist advertising campaigns? Well we did it, and it was awesome. We assembled and performed our street theater on loop outside of the Haight St. American Apparel location for about an hour on Saturday. The police eventually came to ask us to leave (it’s… Continue Reading →